Resources

As a financial counselor, the # 1 question I hear from potential (and current) nursing students is:

Where can I get more money for my nursing education?

and, more specifically:

How can I get money from the United States Government to help with nursing school?

These are great questions. I mean, the U.S. Government really SHOULD be subsidizing people's educations, since they're presumably going to bear the burden of there being a shortage of one million nurses in the next twenty years, right? It stands to reason that if there aren't enough nurses to care for sick people, then these sick people will become a burden on their families (reducing the number of taxable hours worked), stay longer at county hospitals (taxing Medicare and Medicaid resources), and negatively affect the number of hospitals that can stay open (impacting the economy in general. All bad news, so you'd think the government would wise up and throw some money at nursing schools and students, right?

Believe me, quite a few people are lobbying Congress at this very moment, trying to get more funds allocated for this very purpose. In the meantime, though, here are some places where the government actually DOES provide funding- programs you might not know about!

1. The Indian Health Service. Because of the shortage of good health care on Indian Reservations, the U.S. Government now offers a program where ANYONE (no, you don't have to be Native American) can get their student loans paid off (up to $20,000/ year) if they agree to work on a reservation.

4. Perkins Loan Cancellation. This is one that you'll need to ask your specific loan provider about, but in many cases, nurses (and sometimes teachers) can get their Perkins Loans canceled if they're working in a healthcare job. Caution: do NOT just stop paying your Perkins Loan and assume it will be canceled for you-- this could result in a negative mark on your credit! Do the paperwork! To get information on this, you need to call the Federal Student Aid Commission (FSAIC) at 1-800-4-FED-AID, and ask them for "Perkins Loan Cancellation for Nurses." You can also go into the financial aid office at your school and ask them to add you to the cumulative number of students working as a full-time nurse. They should know what you're talking about. If your counselor doesn't, keep asking until you find the person in the office who works on healthcare financial aid!!!

5. National Health Service Corps Scholarships. For students enrolled in primary care nursing practitioner or certified nurse midwife programs. This is a competitive scholarship program, and recipients serve where they are most needed upon completion of their training.

6. State Nursing Programs. This one really falls under "state government programs," but is worth mentioning here, as many states will cancel your student loans if you're willing to work in an underserved area. To find these programs, you'll need to Google your specific state's "Commission on Higher Education," or "State Nursing Programs + Your State." For instance, the state of Arizona offers scholarships and loan cancellation through its Commission on Postsecondary Education, which you can find at: http://www.azhighered.org. If you lived in Arizona, you could also find more information about nursing careers at the Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association's Campaign for Caring website, at: http://www.azcaringcareers.com. Start looking!

7. Join the Military. Alot of students don't want to hear this, but joining the military is one of the best ways to get a comprehensive nursing education, job training, and job opportunities when you graduate. You're going to be putting in the time anyway, so why not let them subsidize you? The Army is just one of the branches of the military offering this program. I would suggest investigating them all, and seeing what they can do for you.

8. Americorps. Yep, they will pay your loans back if you're a nurse or a teacher.

9. The Peace Corps is also in need of healthcare workers, and (this goes without saying)-- being in the Peace Corps is not only good for helping you get your loans paid off. It's also great experience, looks great on your resume, and will probably change your life (and might get you dates).

Think hospitals aren't invested in the future of nursing? Think again! Right now, there are hospitals all over the country that will help you with These hospitals are just ten of the hundreds around the United States that offer scholarship programs for future nurses.

1. Children's Hospital of Atlanta offers two scholarships for nursing students -- one for bilingual nurses, and one general (CHANCES) that repays up to $16,000/ year in tuition.

3. Washoe Health System (Reno, Nevada) offers tution tuition reimbursement and has relationships with the University of Nevada, Reno, Truckee Meadows Community College, and WesternNevada Community College.

4. CVPH Medical Center (Pittsburgh, NY) offers a scholarship program for non-employees. This program has a designated number of slots per year and repays college loans for up to the last 2 years of college. Tuition and books are paid by the hospital in exchange for a work commitment of oneyear at CVPH for every semester sponsored.

5. Columbia-St. Mary's, Inc. (Milwaukee, WI) offers Columbia-St. Mary’s, Inc. offers student loan repayment in exchange for work commitments, tuition reimbursement. They have a relationship with Columbia College of Nursing.

7. Baptist Hospital East (Louisville, KY) offers the “Knowledge Program, which provides $2,500 persemester in exchange for a 6 month work commitment. They also provide $15,000 forAccelerated students in exchange for a 3 year work commitment. Baptist Hospital alsooffers tuition reimbursement for employees.

8. Boston Medical Center (Boston, MA) offers tuition reimbursement, scholarships, and loan forgiveness for nursing students that make a work commitment. Boston Medical Center also offers excellent benefits such as paying for continuing education for their nurses.

9. Maryland General Hospital (Baltimore, MD) offers Scholarship and Internship Programs for RN Students and grads. They also have a Student Nurse Loan Program, through which nursingstudents can receive up to $5,000.00 per year to complete the junior and senior years (upto $10,000.00 total). Upon graduation, the student would be obligated to work one year ina full time capacity as a Registered Nurse at Maryland General Hospital for each year oftuition paid by Maryland General Hospital.

10. Oregon Health & Science University (Portland, OR) offers a tuition reimbursement and student loan repayment in exchange for work commitments. They also offer higher compensationfor BSN-prepared nurses, and have mentorship and residency programs to give you moretraining.

There's been alot of controversy recently because of the long waiting lists students are encountering at some schools, when they go to apply to nursing programs. Why, they wonder, if there's such a huge nursing shortage, are they not able to easily get into programs to become nurses?

This is a good question, and it has a couple of answers. One of them is: the nursing shortage has also hit the faculty, and many schools just don't have enough teachers to take on the number of students they'd need to accept to keep up with the shortage.

Short of a miracle of government funding, schools are coming up with innovative ways to share resources with local hospitals to take on more students. For instance,

Not all programs are completely impacted, however. DiscoverNursing.com, the official website of the Johnson & Johnson Campaign for Nursing's Future, maintains a thorough list of "Nursing Schools With No Waiting List," where students can apply and start attending right away. And while students may have to temporarily relocate in order to start their education right away, they can be assured that there will be nursing jobs waiting for them when they graduate.